Hi, so you'll be touring Europe .. I am unfamiliar with the road quality there .., but I would say that a 700c outfitted with front and rear racks would be the way to go . Here in Australia a lot of people use Mtn bikes to tour on because of the road surfaces outback, read: dusty unmade tracks and the ride of a Mtn bike with suspension forks and wider tires makes for a lot more comfort during the long haul ! and BTW aluminum brackets CAN be fabricated so the use of a Blackburn Lo-rider on the front can still be used with suspension forks !! no problems there .. but ... if your touring will be on relatively smooth sealed bitumen then go with the 700c "touring" bike, the hand positions available on drop bars is greater than that on a Mtn bike , and the less weight of a rigid fork is also good ! , if you have any Q's send an e-mail to www.christiecycles.com.au I used to work there as a mechanic , these guy's know bike touring inside out !!

-Buddy.